JJ Redick offers advice to Doc Rivers, Sixers before Game 2 with Heat
The Philadelphia 76ers have a bit of a problem as they get set to take on the Miami Heat in Game 2 on Wednesday of the Eastern Conference semifinals.
The DeAndre Jordan minutes were a disaster on Monday as he started in the Game 1 loss. He was a minus-22 in 17 minutes of playing time and the other centers–Paul Reed and Paul Millsap–Philadelphia didn’t have much success either.
Coach Doc Rivers said that Philadelphia will continue to go to Jordan ahead of Game 2 on Wednesday, but a former Sixers shooting guard believes that would be a big mistake.
JJ Redick hops on ESPN’s “First Take” and he gave some advice to Rivers and the Sixers:
I don’t know why we would expect more from (James) Harden. He’s shown over the last year and change that this is the player he is. At this stage of his career, he’s a facilitator, he’s a playmaker, but he is not the volume scorer that we saw in Houston. To me, the adjustment is not for James to look to score more, they had success when they went small and they attacked. They couldn’t buy a 3-point bucket and they also had a lot of success when they went to that zone. 23 possessions in zone, 0.65 points per possessions. The 71 possessions in half-court and man, Miami scored 1.13 points per possession. To me, this is about let’s adjust the lineup a little bit. DeAndre Jordan, as much as I love him, a dear friend, but at this point I don’t think he should be starting in a playoff game. Start Paul Reed and at times, go small with Tobias Harris and Georges Niang out on the court, spread them out, give Harden space, give (Tyrese) Maxey space, give Tobias Harris space, and shoot 3s.
Redick is probably correct in that assessment. The Jordan minutes were just terrible and the Sixers should probably focus more on going smaller against the Heat. Game 2 will tell a lot about what Philadelphia wants to do in this series.
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